This weeks talk was by Bishop Causse, the first counselor in the presiding bishopric.
Here is the link for the text: "Is it Still Wonderful to You?"
Here is the video:
I love that Bishop Causse talked about what a wonderful time we live in and pointed out things I often take forgranted, and in return doing exactly what he warned against. We truly have so many wonders around us!
One of my other favorite things he said is that these wonders are often not recognized by our natural sense, but rather by the Holy Ghost. When he said, "When we have the Spirit with us, our spiritual senses are sharpened, and our memory kindled so we cannot forget the miracles and signs we have witnessed," it really hit me how much we need the Spirit to be with us. He said we need to never do anything to risk the loss of the Spirit and that we need t seek it through fervent and righteous living - do I FERVENTLY pray for the Holy Ghost to be with me? I know that it is one of the reasons that we take the sacrament every week, but this talk made me decide to pray more fervently for the Holy Ghost to be with us - which is also a wonderful gift we have been given living in the latter days!
I love how he talked about our "spiritual senses" too. As I read this part in the talk I realized that we cannot truly see and listen without the Holy Ghost. That companionship is what helps us "record" those tings we see and listen to into our hearts. If we don't have that constant companionship we are just looking and hearing. I too realized that I need to pray fervently for the Holy Ghost to be with me. I think I have taken for granted the wonderful gift that the Holy Ghost really is. Thanks for your thoughts!
This talk had a lot of great points in it. One of the quotes I loved was, "To marvel at the wonders of the gospel is a sign of faith. It is to recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives and in everything around us. Our amazement also produces spiritual strength. It gives us the energy to remain anchored in our faith and to engage ourselves in the work of salvation." I never realized all that recognizing the wonderful blessings we have really does as far as showing faith and strengthening us.
Right now, I'm studying the Book of Mormon and I'm in the beginning. Every time I read about Laman and Lemuel (besides thinking that they would make good candidates for Dumb and Dumber:In Ancient Times) I'm amazed at how soon they forget the many miraculous things that happened in their lives. It seems like every other chapter is Nephi reminding them of all they have seen and heard. I've often wondered how they could so quickly forget, and hope that I don't put myself in a similar situation as them. As I read this talk, I realized how easy it would be to forget the wonderful and marvelous things seen if it isn't a priority to remember them. Bishop Causse said, "Over the long term, such things as casual commandment keeping, apathy, or even weariness may set in and make us insensitive to even the most remarkable signs and miracles of the gospel." As he later said, the best way to be sensitive to the signs and miracles of the gospel is to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost with us. (I'm sure that wasn't a priority of Laman and Lemuel. The Book of Mormon would be a lot different if it was.)
Last but not least, I also love how he talked about Jesus' disciples and how they were living and witnessing things that had been long foretold, and then said we are also living during a time prophesied about. That helped me recognize how truly great of a blessing I have to not only live during a time that the gospel has been restored upon the earth, but that I actually have a knowledge of the gospel, and was raised with it.
I really like the summary of this talk at the beginning of the page. Elder Causse says, "To marvel at the wonders of the gospel is a sign of faith. It is to recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives and in everything around us." I love that one of the ways we recognize the beauties of the gospel, is through finding the hand of God in our lives. Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the word, "remember". I hear it every week as I renew my covenants during the sacrament, and especially as I have been reading the Book of Mormon. It seems like one way God would like us to come closer to his son is to remember him.
At first, I thought that this "remembrance" could be best exhibited by simply remembering the life and teachings of my Savior, but as I talked more about it with Joseph, I came to understand that it means much more than that. Remembering is (like Elder Causse stated) recognizing the hand of the hand of the Lord in lives, and witnessing the ways that he delivers all of his children. As I have been reading the Book of Mormon, I have been impressed by how often prophets tell their people to remember the captivity of their fathers, and how God delivered them, whether from sin, pain, suffering or guilt. I know that as I learn of these examples in the scriptures, in the lives of others, and in my own life, "remembering" becomes more than just recalling the words of the Lord, but actually understanding how the Lord has delivered my on a personal level, and how he will continue to do so based up on my faith.
I love this talk because it reminds me to constantly remember and recognize the influence of the Savior in my life, as I consciously make and effort to find the joy and marvels found in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
"I have often wondered what it would have been like to live at the time of our Savior. Can you imagine sitting at His feet? Feeling His embrace? witnessing as He ministered to others? And yet so many who met Him failed to recognize -to "see"- that the very Son of God was living among them."
"Wonders also occur in our individual lives." I also, like Sarah, have been pondering the sacrament, especially the promise to "always remember Him." If I were to remember him twice as much as I do now, I KNOW there would be a change in my life. I recognize some of the tender mercies but know there are so many more I don't recognize. I can't get over the story of the men that had walked for 2 weeks, over 300 miles, in mud so they could deliver their group's tithes and attend the conference.
I love that Bishop Causse talked about what a wonderful time we live in and pointed out things I often take forgranted, and in return doing exactly what he warned against. We truly have so many wonders around us!
ReplyDeleteOne of my other favorite things he said is that these wonders are often not recognized by our natural sense, but rather by the Holy Ghost. When he said, "When we have the Spirit with us, our spiritual senses are sharpened, and our memory kindled so we cannot forget the miracles and signs we have witnessed," it really hit me how much we need the Spirit to be with us. He said we need to never do anything to risk the loss of the Spirit and that we need t seek it through fervent and righteous living - do I FERVENTLY pray for the Holy Ghost to be with me? I know that it is one of the reasons that we take the sacrament every week, but this talk made me decide to pray more fervently for the Holy Ghost to be with us - which is also a wonderful gift we have been given living in the latter days!
I love how he talked about our "spiritual senses" too. As I read this part in the talk I realized that we cannot truly see and listen without the Holy Ghost. That companionship is what helps us "record" those tings we see and listen to into our hearts. If we don't have that constant companionship we are just looking and hearing. I too realized that I need to pray fervently for the Holy Ghost to be with me. I think I have taken for granted the wonderful gift that the Holy Ghost really is. Thanks for your thoughts!
DeleteThis talk had a lot of great points in it. One of the quotes I loved was, "To marvel at the wonders of the gospel is a sign of faith. It is to recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives and in everything around us. Our amazement also produces spiritual strength. It gives us the energy to remain anchored in our faith and to engage ourselves in the work of salvation." I never realized all that recognizing the wonderful blessings we have really does as far as showing faith and strengthening us.
ReplyDeleteRight now, I'm studying the Book of Mormon and I'm in the beginning. Every time I read about Laman and Lemuel (besides thinking that they would make good candidates for Dumb and Dumber:In Ancient Times) I'm amazed at how soon they forget the many miraculous things that happened in their lives. It seems like every other chapter is Nephi reminding them of all they have seen and heard. I've often wondered how they could so quickly forget, and hope that I don't put myself in a similar situation as them. As I read this talk, I realized how easy it would be to forget the wonderful and marvelous things seen if it isn't a priority to remember them. Bishop Causse said, "Over the long term, such things as casual commandment keeping, apathy, or even weariness may set in and make us insensitive to even the most remarkable signs and miracles of the gospel." As he later said, the best way to be sensitive to the signs and miracles of the gospel is to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost with us. (I'm sure that wasn't a priority of Laman and Lemuel. The Book of Mormon would be a lot different if it was.)
Last but not least, I also love how he talked about Jesus' disciples and how they were living and witnessing things that had been long foretold, and then said we are also living during a time prophesied about. That helped me recognize how truly great of a blessing I have to not only live during a time that the gospel has been restored upon the earth, but that I actually have a knowledge of the gospel, and was raised with it.
I really like the summary of this talk at the beginning of the page. Elder Causse says, "To marvel at the wonders of the gospel is a sign of faith. It is to recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives and in everything around us." I love that one of the ways we recognize the beauties of the gospel, is through finding the hand of God in our lives. Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the word, "remember". I hear it every week as I renew my covenants during the sacrament, and especially as I have been reading the Book of Mormon. It seems like one way God would like us to come closer to his son is to remember him.
ReplyDeleteAt first, I thought that this "remembrance" could be best exhibited by simply remembering the life and teachings of my Savior, but as I talked more about it with Joseph, I came to understand that it means much more than that. Remembering is (like Elder Causse stated) recognizing the hand of the hand of the Lord in lives, and witnessing the ways that he delivers all of his children. As I have been reading the Book of Mormon, I have been impressed by how often prophets tell their people to remember the captivity of their fathers, and how God delivered them, whether from sin, pain, suffering or guilt. I know that as I learn of these examples in the scriptures, in the lives of others, and in my own life, "remembering" becomes more than just recalling the words of the Lord, but actually understanding how the Lord has delivered my on a personal level, and how he will continue to do so based up on my faith.
I love this talk because it reminds me to constantly remember and recognize the influence of the Savior in my life, as I consciously make and effort to find the joy and marvels found in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
"I have often wondered what it would have been like to live at the time of our Savior. Can you imagine sitting at His feet? Feeling His embrace? witnessing as He ministered to others? And yet so many who met Him failed to recognize -to "see"- that the very Son of God was living among them."
ReplyDelete"Wonders also occur in our individual lives." I also, like Sarah, have been pondering the sacrament, especially the promise to "always remember Him." If I were to remember him twice as much as I do now, I KNOW there would be a change in my life. I recognize some of the tender mercies but know there are so many more I don't recognize.
I can't get over the story of the men that had walked for 2 weeks, over 300 miles, in mud so they could deliver their group's tithes and attend the conference.